This invention pertains to a chair and desk system which is well suited for use in an educational environment. The system includes chairs, desks, chair/desk combinations and accessories for use therewith.
Furniture used in educational settings, such as classrooms in primary and secondary schools, typically consists of combination desk/chair units or a series of tables in which students are seated in individual chairs. Combination desk/chair units are typically employed in primary classrooms, and include a frame having a set of rear legs and a set of front legs. A seat is mounted to a seat support structure interconnected with the rear of the frame, and a desk is supported by a desk support structure located at the front of the frame. This type of construction is old and well-known, and has been used in classrooms for many decades.
Educational tables and chairs, which are used in other types of classrooms, are also typically constructed in a manner that is old and well-known. Tables typically consist of a rectangular laminated top with a leg supporting the top at each corner. Chairs are typically constructed of thick, hard plastic seats and backs which are mounted to a four-legged frame which includes a seat mounting area and a back mounting area.
It is an object of the present invention to advance the design, function, manufacture and aesthetic characteristics of furniture which is typically employed in a classroom setting. It is a further object of the invention to provide such furniture which incorporates similar design elements for desks, chairs, chair/desk combinations and tables, which departs significantly from existing technology and which provides significant advantages in use, manufacture and aesthetics. A still further object of the invention is to provide such furniture which is readily adaptable for manufacture in varying sizes so as to accommodate differently sized users encountered in different educational settings. Yet another object of the invention is to provide such furniture which has ergonomic advantages over the prior art. A still further object of the invention is to provide such furniture which is relatively simple in its components and manufacture, and which utilizes a number of common components so as to reduce the cost of manufacturing furniture of varying sizes.
In accordance with the invention, an article of furniture is made up of a supporting frame assembly and a furniture component mounted to the frame assembly. The frame assembly is substantially C-shaped when viewed from the side, and includes a pair of interconnected C-shaped side frame sections. Each side frame section includes a lower member which engages the floor or other supporting surface, an upright member extending upwardly from one end of the lower member, and an upper member which supports a component of the article of furniture. This construction of the frame assembly can be used to form a chair or a desk, and the open area of the frame assembly faces the area occupied by the user's legs. That is, the C-shaped frame assembly of the chair faces forwardly and the C-shaped frame assembly of a desk faces rearwardly, to maximize the amount of leg room available for a user.
A chair constructed according to the invention has a seat supported by the upper members of the side frame sections. Each side frame section further includes an extension of the upright member which extends above the seat, and defines an area to which a back is mounted. In addition, the upper ends of the side frame sections are interconnected by an inverted U-shaped handle member, which is located behind the back.
The side frame sections are constructed such that each lower member extends forwardly from the lower end of the upright member, such as at a bend located between the lower member and the upright member. A glide is mounted to each side frame section at the bend, and is adapted to engage the floor or other supporting surface at a location rearwardly of the user's center of gravity. In a preferred form, the glide engages the floor at a location rearwardly of the back. In this manner, the chair is resistant to tipping when the forward portion of the chair is raised.
The back is designed such that its maximum width is at the upper end of the back, with the sides of the back being arcuate in shape and extending downwardly from the upper end of the back. The seat and the back define surfaces which support the user at an optimal seating angle and which provide comfort during long periods of setting.
In a desk assembly, a desk top is mounted to the upper support members. The side frame sections are parallel to each other and extend in a vertical plane, and function to support the desk top above the floor or other supporting surface. Each side frame section includes a lower member which engages the floor and an upright extending upwardly therefrom, with the upper member extending from the upper end of the upright in a direction parallel to the lower member. The desk frame and top may have a construction suitable for a single student. Alternatively, the frame may be formed to have a greater length and to support a double desk top, to provide a double desk construction.
The invention further contemplates a tablet desk in which an upright member extends upwardly from the forward end of one of the lower members. A tablet support frame is engaged with the upright member and is located over the seat, and a tablet top is mounted to the tablet frame so as to be spaced above and forwardly of the seat. The same basic construction of the chair frame assembly is employed to construct a tablet desk of this type.
The invention further contemplates a double entry desk having a chair frame and a desk frame which are merged together, such that the lower member of each chair side frame section is formed continuously with the lower member of each desk side frame section. With this construction, the desk top is permanently mounted in a fixed location above and forwardly of the seat, and the user can enter or exit the combination desk/chair assembly from either side.
Various other features, objects and advantages of the invention will be made apparent from the following description taken together with the drawings.